Home for Halloween (ONE-SHOT)
by shipnation
Summary: This is my contribution to the Richonne Halloween Theme Challenge on Tumblr. It is just a little thing that popped in my head, and I'm not sure if its good or not, but I wanted to share. I hope you like. DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the characters from The Walking Dead.


"I've got the popcorn." Carl said as he carried a bowl full of buttery goodness to the living room.

"I've got the candy." Michonne followed suit holding two Big Cats and a half bag of stale M&Ms. She knew it was a stomachache waiting to happen, but hey, the night called for it.

Carl took a seat on the floor in front of the couch, while Michonne went to start the generator where they had the TV and DVD player hooked up. The purple glow of twilight illuminated the living room and the dark of night was fast approaching.

Rick walked in with Judith in his arms, looking at the set up Michonne and Carl had prepared. "What are you two up to?" he asked. The baby yawned and laid her head on her father's shoulder, clearly ready for sleep.

"It's Halloween. We are going to watch a scary movie." Carl answered, already digging into the popcorn on his lap.

"Reality not scary enough?" he said, patting Judith on her back. Rick had stopped keeping track of holidays, or any days really and without children running around in costumes, he had no idea. The weather was cool and brisk though, perfect for a Halloween night.

Michonne turned around to face Rick, flashing him a look of annoyance in the process. He could be such a downer sometimes. They only realized it was Halloween this morning, had she remembered a few days earlier she could have gotten costumes for her Carl and Judith, maybe even one for Rick and then they could really celebrate right, but for now this would have to do. There was no telling if they would make it to next year, let alone another day, so Michonne was ready to make every day the best it could be.

"It's not the same thing, Dad." Carl answered, not to be deterred by his father's cynicism.

"So what's it gonna be, Carl? Did you decide?" Michonne asked after getting the power on.

They had three movies to choose from. The Exorcist, The Shining, or A Nightmare on Elm Street.

"I was too young to watch these before, but now..." Carl examined all three boxes. "Nightmare on Elm Street." He decided, passing the DVD to Michonne. "Are you going to watch Dad?"

Judith was now lightly snoring in her father's arms. Despite his quip he definitely wanted to be a part of the Halloween fun. Now that they secured and rebuilt their home after the attack by The Wolves, this was life and that included movie nights with his family. "Alright. Let me put Judith to bed." He caught a tiny smirk ghosting on Michonne's lips as he turned to put Judy to bed.

By the time Rick returned the entire house was pitch black except for the glow of the tv screen. Michonne was sitting on the sofa now, Carl still in his position on the floor in front of her. Rick took his seat at the opposite end of the sofa.

Michonne pressed play on the DVD remote to begin the movie. She broke a Big Cat in half and passed one half to Carl, then she broke her half in two, passing a piece to Rick. He took it graciously and they began to watch the movie.

Rick was not a big fan of scary movies, even before the apocalypse. He would much rather laugh than have his skin crawl, and Freddy Krueger was one of the worst. There was something eerie about having your dreams invaded. For Michonne, she saw this movie more times than she could remember, so she knew every scary part before it happened. She enjoyed all manners of celebrations before the turn, and Halloween was no different. She would spend the day watching spooky movies with Mike and stuffing her face with candy, so right now she felt very much at home.

They were mid movie when the tone began to get more ominous as the inevitable appearance of Freddy Krueger was about to show up. The woman on screen was falling asleep and the walls began to move. Carl started to feel exposed on the floor by himself, so he got up and sat between Rick and Michonne on the couch. Michonne smiled and rested her arm on the couch behind Carl's head, passing him some M&Ms.

Rick's focus was on the movie, its been so long since he had actually seen one, and when Freddy popped out, he jumped, his left hand grabbing at Michonne's arm that was resting on the couch. He quickly removed it and looked at her sheepishly. She was not looking back at him, but at the tv instead and he wondered if she had even noticed his moment of alarm. He grabbed a handful of popcorn out of the bowl on Carl's lap, stuffing his face and hopefully hiding his embarrassment.

Michonne had noticed though and she struggled to keep the smile within herself. Old, strong, brave, Rick Grimes got a little unnerved by a fictional boogieman. It was quite cute, she thought to herself.

* * *

"That was super creepy." Carl said when the movie was over.

"It wasn't too bad." Rick added.

Both Michonne and Carl looked at Rick incredulously. "Yeah... okay, Dad." Carl said. He felt him jump beside him a number of times during the movie, and Michonne could still practically feel the death grip he placed on her arm when Freddy jumped out. Michonne chuckled at the memory.

After cleaning up and putting everything away, they settled off to bed.

Michonne was in her room on the cusp of sleep when she heard her bedroom door creak open. She looked up to see Carl standing in the doorway, his face blank, she could tell he was troubled.

"Carl?" Michonne asked, her heart increasing in pace, not sure if something had gone wrong.

"I can't sleep." he said, and Michonne's face dropped. It was moments like this that she forgot Carl was still that young boy she met in the prison despite all the horrors they had gone through.

"Come on over." She said, pulling the covers back, so he could lie next to her in the bed. Carl quietly walked over gratefully and nestled in. Michonne brushed his hair gently and within minutes, he was fast asleep.

Michonne was ready to welcome sleep for the second time when she heard her door creak open again. She looked up at the corner of her eye, and she heard him, before she could actually see him.

"Michonne? Carl?" Rick quietly entered the room, with Judith in his arms. The baby was still sound asleep.

"I-" he started, when Michonne lifted the covers again, inviting Rick to take his place beside them as well.

Rick closed the door behind him and placed Judith next to her brother on the bed. Carl absently moved deeper into the bed creating room for his sister and father. He wrapped his arm around his sister and cuddled her into him. Rick slipped into the bed as well, facing the middle taking in the vision of his son and daughter, their eyes closed peacefully, sleeping together. He spent many nights watching them sleep on the road, but mainly because he was worried about them, wondering if sleeping on the cold hard earth would be their entire life. Now they had a roof over their heads, and soft pillows to lie on and he was grateful. Looking past Carl's head, he took in the vision of Michonne. Her eyes closed, her features soft and serene. It dawned on him, how much he liked this view and none of it would be possible without her.

Rick reached his arm, over his kids and gently grabbed her hand. Michonne opened her eyes to see Rick had reached for her, his eyes closed now, but the corners of his mouth upturned in a tiny, playful smile. Michonne listened to the tiny snores coming from Carl, as she laced her fingers with Rick's and closed her eyes again. She knew she was in for a good night sleep, with her family right beside her. Not even Freddy could screw this up. It was a happy Halloween, indeed.


End file.
